Locomotive formulas

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A Fort Worth & Western mixed freight ascends a grade near Cresson, Texas, in May 2013. Steve Sweeney Q Do railroads have formulas managing the length or tonnage of a train based on how many engines are pulling it? What factors would be in such a formula? — Doug Gard, McCordsville, Ind. A Each railroad […]

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Whatever happened to the Santa Fe?

ATSFMoM

Railroads included in this map: Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe; Arizona & California; Arizona Central; Blackwell Northern; BNSF Railway; Cimarron Valley; Dallas Area Rapid Transit; Farmrail; Fort Worth & Western; Grand Canyon; Garden City Western; Heart of Texas; Kansas City Southern; Kansas & Oklahoma; Midland; Panhandle Northern; Pacific Sun; Rail Runner Express; Metrolink; Coaster/Sprinter; Santa […]

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Rocky Mountaineer to buy brand-new dome cars NEWSWIRE

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New GoldLeaf dome car final designs as envisioned by a graphic artist. Passenger car and locomotive maker, Stadler, will build the cars for the Rocky Mountaineer land cruise trains in Switzerland and Germany. Rocky Mountaineer VANCOUVER, B.C. — Following an eight-year search, Rocky Mountaineer Railtours says it is commissioning European rail manufacturer Stadler to build […]

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Ready

Whitewater Valley Railroad’s No. 25 stands by, waiting further orders on Dec. 21, 2013. The decades-old Lima-Hamilton served Cincinnati Union Terminal and the Cadillac & Lake City Railroad before moving to Connersville, Ind. Photo by Steve Sweeney […]

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Gray day

  Northbound Florida East Coast train No. 224 peers through the fog at Stratten Road between St. Augustine and Jacksonville, Fla., on Jan. 12, 2015. Photo by Brian Schmidt […]

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Leverage

Pulling the correct lever is an important matter for operators of Metra’s Tower A2 in western Chicago in September 2013. This pneumatic lever machine uses brass rods to trigger air pulses to switch more than 100 points on Union Pacific headed due west out of downtown. Photo by Steve Sweeney […]

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RDC trips scheduled on Reading & Northern NEWSWIRE

RDCs

Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway SCHUYLKILL HAVEN, Pa. – The Reading & Northern Railroad, through its Lehigh Gorge Scenic Railway operation, will offer a number of RDC fan trips over its lines during the summer months. This marks the first use of the silver Budd-built cars in 15 years. Nos. 9166 and 9168 have been overhauled […]

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VIDEO: Wheel-rail interaction explained NEWSWIRE

LAS VEGAS – Railroad wheels wear over time. When they do, they affect the performance and reliability of the freight or passenger car or locomotive that they help carry down the tracks. Gordon Bachinsky, founder of Wheel Rail Seminars and the Wheel Rail Interaction conference lays out the basics for Trains‘ Steve Sweeney with model […]

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Museum unveils Tennessee, Alabama & Georgia-painted GP38 NEWSWIRE

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Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – The Tennessee Valley Railroad Museum is preserving a piece of southern shortline railroading history with the unveiling of its newly restored Tennessee, Alabama & Georgia Railway EMD GP38 No. 80. The blue-and-yellow-painted high-nose GP38 was posed outside of the railroad’s Soule Shops over the weekend. “TAG 80 has […]

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Auxiliary tenders

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Southern Railway 2-8-0 No. 630 on a Norfolk Southern excursion carries 10,000 gallons of water in its tender and an additional 12,500 gallons in its auxiliary tender to negate the need for additional water between stops. Allyson Praytor Q I saw a television show where steam locomotives were operating with two tenders instead of just […]

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Team to restore a ‘Dixie’ 4-8-4 NEWSWIRE

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Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis 4-8-4 No. 576 Trains: Jim Wrinn NASHVILLE, Tenn. — One of the rarest members of “the greatest generation” of modern American steam has languished in a Nashville park for more than six decades. Multiple efforts to bring it back to life have come and gone. Now, though, steam buffs hope […]

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